Of the disappointing Love affair that is Indian webcomics

Bhujwasis (and other junta) still recovering from the bought of loud fervor of Ganesh-utsav will totally relate to this webcomic:

Permalink: crocodileinwatertigeronland.tumblr.com

crocodileinwatertigeronland.tumblr.com

Can I just say I'm in Love with a capital L. I found this really awesome, super sarcastic and super meta webcomic that updates every Monday (the minuscule regular readership will know how I struggle with Monday mornings). Introducing Crocodile in Water Tiger on Land. I love everything about them including their introduction:

Crocodile in water tiger on land is a non-profit equal opportunity collection of below-the-belt cheap shots in comic form. Look for updates every Monday morning, the best time of the week for insults.

as well as their interview in Helter Skelter (which is where I discovered them)

flyyoufools.com

Not that I've not been in love before. There was Fly You Fools back in the day when Google Reader was a thing. [I have no idea who I have to thank for sharing this one but I definitely know who I have to curse for taking that beautiful community away from me. (Google, you are quite evil).] FYF had awesome pop-arty graphics and the foul-mouthed sarcasm that made it very relatable for me.  But it didn't last; not a peep from them since Feb 2011. 

mantaraycomics.tumblr.com/thesmallpicture

Then I discovered Manta Ray Comics and I used to look forward to their weekly comic, The Small Picture. It had so many things going for it: it had great art (Prabha Mallya, you're awesome!) and it was political and subtly sarcastic. It even had syndication; it used appear in the Live Mint. 

My favorite was this comic titled Toasted because it referenced Mad Men and when it came out, I was having a Don Draper moment. Needless to say I was floored (I loved the idea of Don Draper having to wrestle with advertising in the smartphone era.). However, all good things come an end and just like that, they went quite. But it was good while it lasted and it wasn't me, it was YOU. 

Any-the-who, one mustn't let past disappointments color one's judgement about future dalliances. Here's looking forward to Monday Mornings. 

An ode to how much you stink, Rambo

Rambo on a rare rainy afternoon in Bhuj

Meet Rambo, the dawg who lords around the entire office like he owns. And he is just as badass as his namesake. 

Image Source: rambo.wikia.com

He has multiple scars and presumably alpha-bragging rights. He will plonk his arse wherever he likes it and there aint no thang you can do 'bout it. Even if he creates a massive stink under your desk space. He'll just sit there and lick his balls and if you create a ruckus about him sitting there, he'll calmly raise a lazy, disinterested eye and then completely ignore you.

All Hail The Supreme Indifferent Master!

Sal wanted to go to Wyoming

Image Source: rogerebert.com

In a time honored tradition among the Bujwasis, we all congregated at Satish's house last night (20 mins past the agreed time) and debated which movie to watch. Satish had just bought a new projector because the last one had developed a creeping corruption of dead pixels. Anyways we wanted to start this one on a good note and we settled on Dog Day Afternoon. 

This is the story of a guy, Sonny Wortzik (played by Al Pacino) whose life's sound track could've been The Animals' 'Don't let me be misunderstood'. He is out there with his friend Sal, trying to rob a bank in Brooklyn to fund his lover's sex change operation and having a serious case of Murphy's Law. Even though Interstellar tried to change our view about the said law - 

Murphy's law doesn't mean that something bad will happen. It means that whatever *can* happen, will happen.

some impressions are just difficult to shake off. 

Anyways, the movie is this beautiful, fast-paced, tight narrative where we see the day and its strange event unfold from a point of view that is largely informed by Sonny's. He is the man trying to run the show, he is kind, he is desperate, and shit is being thrown at him fast and loose. There is a very beautiful scene where he is talking to his lover, Leon on the phone, he is in the bank with Sal and all the hostages, Leon is in the barber shop across the street surrounded by cops and they break up because Leon doesn't want to be 'accessory' to the whole thing. That is such a personal moment played out in such a public setting, it broke  my heart. 

Image Source: wikipedia.org

The one complaint I had with the movie was that we get almost nothing from Sal (played by John Cazale). We get some hints about how he is a devout catholic and believes that the body is the temple of the lord, he has a problem with being called a homosexual (he is not but his fervent denial smacks of homophobia) but doesn't seem to have a problem with his friend Sonny's homosexuality. He has never been on an airplane before but has been to prison. With the bank robbery turning into a negotiation, he is faced with the prospect of either going back to prison or having to fly to some far away country and never come back - none of them look attractive to him. Also he doesn't know where to go; he thought Wyoming would be a good country to go to but he ends up dead at the end of the day. That is all very know about him. We don't know why he went to prison and why he hated it, who are is family and why he doesn't have anyone to call when he is leaving forever. 

By contrast we watch Sonny make calls to people he loves; we meet his parents, his wife, his lover; we watch them argue; we even watch him dictate his own will. Sal is just there in the background, speaking very little, all wound up tight like a ticking time bomb spring, and we were all waiting for him to explode. But the bang in the end is the sound of Sal getting a bullet in the head.

Ok, that was a really long point there. 

Another thing I found really interesting was the underlying politics in the film. There was the rage over recent Attica Prison Riots where the prisoners demanded more political rights and better living conditions but the end result was a forceful retaliation. There was the voyeuristic media and everyone's tendency of performing for the camera. There was also extreme peevishness over use of foul language one news channel. And then there were the polarized reactions to Sonny's homosexuality. Watching all of this I have a vague sense of Déjà vu - more things change, the more they remain same. I really like it when the tiniest of references add nuance to a story and this movie certainly had that going for it. 

A home coming for a Bhujwasi

The Creepy Doll, like the Lone Pelican of Hamirsar (will introduce
it some other time) are landmarks that makes a Bhujwasi feel at home.

It's so good to be back, after two months in the rural hinterland of western UP, Bhuj feels amazing. I've always thought of Bhuj as this alcove in civilization where one can nestle comfortably. The last time I felt this sense of comfort or being at home in a place, I called myself a KGPian; now I call myself a Bhujwasi. 

Bhuj, the city of beautiful sunsets and breezy evenings; Bhuj, the city of expats in flux; Bhuj, the temporary home of the wandering misfits, the wonderfully varied and deeply passionate. This is Bhuj for me, a city that accepted my weird and offered me friendship. 

One of the things I love about Bhuj (and this is something that happened in Kharapur a lot as well) is that people leave behind these legacies, so we have Bhawna's Bean Salad, Tanvi's Pumpkin Soup, Aarati's Baked Veggies - the list just goes on. And long after the Bhujwasis in question have moved to different places, one makes them and in the flavors, savors all the evenings and weekends spent together, all the seasons we weathered together, all the drunk brunches and nights on the beach, all the poetry readings, all the random impromptu plans, and the camaraderie we shared.

Ok I'm getting definitely soppy. Needless to say I missed Bhuj too much and my fellow Bhujwasis even more. Now I'm back to walking down Saraf Bazaar, joking with my tailor, planning the fake-sangeet, drinking my coffee, and eating my bean salad. If you're curious about the salad in question, here is another Bhujwasi talking about it.